live from washington, this is bbc news. an appeals court over cones the rape description of disgraced former hollywood producer harvey weinstein, ordering a new trial. humanitarian groups warn of worsening conditions inside gaza as the us military begins construction of temporary piers to boost a deliveries. in the us supreme court considers whether donald trump is a bureaucrat for immune from prosecution from actions he took while in office. hello, new york's top court has overturned the 2020 rape conviction of disgraced hollywood producer harvey weinstein, paving the way for a new trial. it was a 4— three ruling, the state's court of appeal found ruling, the state's court of appealfound he did not get ruling, the state's court of

appeal found he did not get a fair trial, saying thejudge made a mistake by allowing women to testify about allegations that were not part of the charges he faced. the accusations against him began in 2017. they sparked the movement known as #metoo that exposed sexual abuse of the highest levels of hollywood and beyond. the 72—year—old will remain in prison, serving a 16 sentence for great rape and a separate case in la, it's not directly affected by this ruling. emma vardy has more from los angeles. when harvey weinstein — one of the most powerful men in hollywood — was accused of rape, it led to an outpouring about a culture of sexual assault and misogyny experienced by women around the world — what became known as the #metoo movement. many women came forward, accusing harvey weinstein of forcing them into sex. for years, there was a fear of speaking out, they said, because of his ability to make or break careers. but now, the rape conviction

against harvey weinstein that came out of the #metoo movement has been overturned in new york. the court of appeal that prosecutors are called witnesses whose accusations were not part of the charges against him. it meant he was unfairly tried for past behaviour, they said. harvey weinstein was also convicted of rape in a separate case here in la. last year, he was sentenced to 16 years for raping a woman in a beverly hills hotel. he will remain in prison while a decision is made in new york over whether to retry him. harvey weinstein�*s lawyer has commended the appeals court, he said for upholding the principles that should govern a criminal trial. in this courthouse behind us, at that trial, the law was not applied fairly to harvey weinstein. you can't throw out 100 years of legal precedent because someone is unpopular. harvey weinstein�*s conviction in california is also being appealed. his legal team are looking

into what implications the new york ruling could have here. emma vardy, bbc news, los angeles. one of the first women to go public with allegations against harvey weinstein was actress ashleyjudd. she says the court overturning his 2020 conviction is an active institutional betrayal and speaking to the bbc, she shared more to the decision. when harvey sexually harassed me and defamed and interfered with my economic and creative opportunities after i escaped him in the hotel room in 1996, i told anyone who would listen, i told anyone who would listen, i was filming kiss the girls at the time and i went straight to the time and i went straight to the set and told the director and the screenplay writer and my agent and no—one listened and they were all the systems that just and they were all the systems thatjust not only and they were all the systems that just not only tolerated but enabled him, both men and

women at the time, and part of what's so important about the #metoo movement is not only do men who stay silent about other men's violence longer tolerate that, but that we end impunity. douglas wiktor is a lawyer who represented several once dean accuses. i spoke to him earlier to understand the impact a retrial would have on the accusers. we appreciate you joining us and i wanted to ask you firstly what is your reaction to this court's verdict?— court's verdict? today's verdict _ court's verdict? today's verdict actually, - court's verdict? today's verdict actually, the - court's verdict? today's - verdict actually, the appeal that overturned the conviction from two years ago also really is a step back. it's really unfortunately a tragic decision. so many hours went into the prosecution of harvey weinstein. there were six victims who testified at the trial. now, there will have to be a retrial in the coming months or years and it's really going to retraumatised the

victims who have to go to trial, who have to be cross—examined again, repaired for trial and it's reallyjust for trial and it's really just a for trial and it's reallyjust a very unfortunate and automatic.— a very unfortunate and automatic. ., ., automatic. you said earlier today that _ automatic. you said earlier today that today's - automatic. you said earlier today that today's decision | automatic. you said earlier l today that today's decision is a major step back in holding those accountable for acts of sexual violence. what do you mean by that?— sexual violence. what do you mean by that? proving sexual assault or _ mean by that? proving sexual assault or a _ mean by that? proving sexual assault or a rape _ mean by that? proving sexual assault or a rape is _ mean by that? proving sexual assault or a rape is not - mean by that? proving sexual assault or a rape is not an - assault or a rape is not an easy task. you have to prove it by showing beyond a reasonable doubt, you have to convince all 12 jurors of that as well. and these cases usually fall on the question of intent and other states in the us as well as the federal rules allow other uncharged crimes to show the propensity or the predisposition of the accused. in new york, though, it doesn't allow that. new york allows

only certain exceptions. one of which is intense, and that's why the prosecutors were able to call those three witnesses, the court of appeals, the highest court in new york, now has said that was wrong but the judge actually had a very reasoned decision when he ruled at the trial level. the da wanted five extra witnesses. he said three was enough. and goes to show that weinstein was aware of the victims's lack of consent that he knew exactly what was going on and that's how the da was able to show the intent that was required to prove their case. now, they're going to have to be tried in the case where they will have two victims, the two charging victims who remain, but they won't be able to have the other witnesses to show this level of intent. �* , ., intent. and these other witnesses _ intent. and these other witnesses are - intent. and these other witnesses are called . intent. and these other. witnesses are called prior intent. and these other- witnesses are called prior bad act witnesses, they are brought in, as you said, to maybe talk more broadly about the personal

trial but are not related to the actual accusations or charges themselves. once been�*s lawyers said he didn't get a fair trial because of the use of those prior bad acts witnesses.— of those prior bad acts witnesses. , ., ., witnesses. do you agree with that? i disagree _ witnesses. do you agree with that? i disagree with - witnesses. do you agree with that? i disagree with that. i witnesses. do you agree with | that? i disagree with that. his lawyers actually said today it's a victory for all criminal defendants, so i guess they are on the side of making sure that defendants don't go to jail. i'm on the side of making sure that victims get their voices heard and people are held accountable for their actions. consistent with due process. as i said, the issue with the intent is a really difficult thing to prove in a sexual assault context because it is typically a he said, she said scenario. so these other uncharged witnesses, they actually helped the prosecution show that the alleged wrongdoer knew exactly what was going on, but it wasn't consent, but they

were aware of the victims lack of consent, so now victims are hamstrung and the reason why it's a step back is because they see that coming forward doesn't always work out the way it really ought to in a fair trial. ., ., ~' it really ought to in a fair trial. ., ., ~ ., , , trial. looking more broadly now, trial. looking more broadly now. what _ trial. looking more broadly now, what do _ trial. looking more broadly now, what do you - trial. looking more broadly now, what do you think- trial. looking more broadly| now, what do you think this ruling will do to the #metoo movement itself, maybe the willingness for some victims to come forward and then to put themselves through the legal process? themselves through the legal rocess? ~ ., �* process? well, i mean, i've been doing _ process? well, i mean, i've been doing this _ process? well, i mean, i've been doing this now- process? well, i mean, i've been doing this now for- process? well, i mean, i've| been doing this now for over process? well, i mean, i've - been doing this now for over 20 years and so, i've seen the world change. in 2011, i represented the made in the dominique strauss kahn sexual assault case and in the mid— manhattan district attorney of the time cyrus vance decided not to prosecute the case. we then have the #metoo movement, then have the #metoo movement, the same district attorney cyrus vance decided to bring the case against holly once dean. so i've really seen the

positive changes because of the metoo movement —— harvey weinstein. victims voices were heard, they could come forward and people would be held accountable at law enforcement would take their concerns and their cases seriously. the message i think at least in the short term, is the victims can go and testify and co—operate with law enforcement but defence lawyers still have a playbook of typical methods to try and not only discredit the mitrail but also to legally manoeuvre and get a jewry verdict of 12 people overturned —— discredit them at trial. douglas wigdor, a lawyer who has represented once dean victims in new york, thank you for your time. thank you. before once dean. the us supreme court heard arguments about whether former president donald trump could be secured for actions he took while in office. he claims he

is entitled to absolute immunity, shielding him from being charged for allegedly attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. the justices, results of the 2020 election. thejustices, however, were split on just how much immunity he should be granted. gary o'donoghue has more. the central question does a president, does donald trump, have absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for acts committed while he was in office? that's the view of his lawyers and the special counseljack smith, who is prosecuting donald trump for his part in attempts to overturn the 2020 election says no—one is above the law. the justices examined all sides of this argument, especially interested in the distinction between public acts as president and private acts as president.

their decision is likely to take about two months before it comes down and could delay the case even further. it will have significant ramifications for donald trump's other criminal cases and, indeed, for the election. donald trump himself was not in washington but was in a courtroom in new york, with the first of a criminal trial of us president is under way and he addressed the supreme court case. the us supreme court had a monumental hearing on immunity and the immunity having to do with the presidential immunity. and i think it was made clear— i hope it was made clear— that the president has to have immunity. if you don't have a president or at most because they would be a ceremonial president. that's not the founders had in mind when they were talking about ceremonial, were talking about ceremonial, we want presidents who can get things done and bring people together. so i heard the meeting was quite amazing. quite amazing. and the justices

were on the game. in quite amazing. and the 'ustices were on the gameh were on the game. in new york donald trump _ were on the game. in new york donald trump is _ were on the game. in new york donald trump is accused - were on the game. in new york donald trump is accused of - donald trump is accused of covering up the hush money payment to an adult film star which he denies. on day seven, the key witness was former national enquirer publisher david becker. he testified for more than four hours, discussing the work that he said he did for fermor president donald trump —— becker. he called the boss. added tofick has the details. david becker, the former publisher of the national enquirer was back on the stand. he was part of it all with donald trump and michael cohen allegedly and he said when a former playboy model karen mcdougal was shopping her story about an alleged affair with donald trump, michael cohen directed him to pay her hundred and $50,000 to suppress her story. he said the boss, meaning donald trump, would take care of the payment. but then mr becker said his counsel

advised him against being reimbursed —— becker he said they thought it was a campaign finance violation that payment. so when it came to being told about stormy daniels and her story, he said that he refused to pay her $130,000 to buy her story, instead telling michael cohen that the boss would probably want him, cohen, to buy it to suppress the story. but then we heard from the defence and in their questioning, they really sought to get packer to really characterise the catch and kill scheme as prosecutors have put it —— becker. that's a standard operating procedure for a tabloid and not a criminal conspiracy that violated electoral laws. the defence asked him about that and he said yes, they often did by stories and not publish them and that he often suppressed stories for celebrities such as

arnold schwarzenegger, tiger woods and even a high profile democrat rahm emanuel, the former white house chief of staff for barack obama. the un relief agency for palestinians under is warning about disease outbreaks in gaza amid worsening weather conditions, lack of sufficient water and waste disposal. the us military confirmed it started the construction of a temporary peer of the coast of gaza which is meant to boost deliveries of desperately needed aid. following reports the israel defense forces are preparing for a ground offensive in the city of lougher, satellite images show new tent encampments in southern gaza. it's pretty clear that israel's preparations for this much altered assault on rafah in southern gaza are gathering pace, has been an all—day meeting of the israeli war cabinet, it is still israel's intentions to finish off hamas notjust politically but also

militarily, and according to israeli sources about 25% of hamas's fighting force remains, along with the leadership and most of it is thought to be in rougher in southern gaza, but alongside it must be remembered that about 130,000 hostages, those who were taken and abducted into gaza on october seven —— 130 hostages. there is also 1.5 million gazans or thereabouts, internal refugees, thought to be in rougher which is why the international community in particular the americans and british and other allies of israel have urged israel not to undertake this big full—scale military operation in order to get or to facilitate the movement of some of those internal refugees because there is already humanitarian crisis in gaza and the prospect of a big lottery operation alongside more than 1 million internal refugees is something that a lot of people don't want to consider. one thing that may prevent a big military operation happening is if peace talks or talks about a

ceasefire between the israelis and hamas were suddenly to get somewhere. as peace talks have not really got anywhere in recent days. the mediators, the egyptians in particular and qataris, have expressed frustration at the big distance between the sides. there are reports in israel tonight that egyptian negotiators are due to meet the israelis, perhaps with a view to getting those talks about a ceasefire going again. but as things stand, there are no talks about a ceasefire and israel's military operation is still looking as though it will happen at some point in the nearfuture. it has been nearly a month and seven workers from the world central kitchen aid group were killed in gaza by israeli forces. on thursday, they were remembered in the ceremony held in washington and founder of the charityjose founder of the charity jose andres founder of the charityjose andres gave an emotional eulogy at the memorial service, saying they risk everything to feed people they didn't know. with his voice breaking at times, he

demanded more answers from the israeli army. i demanded more answers from the israeli army-— demanded more answers from the israeli army-— israeli army. i know we all have many _ israeli army. i know we all have many unanswered i israeli army. i know we all - have many unanswered questions about what happened. and why. there is no excuses for these giving is, none. the official explanation is not good enough and we are still obviously demanding an investigation into the actions of the idf against our team. the actions of the idf against ourteam. even the actions of the idf against our team. even one innocent life taken is one too many. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at the story making use of the uk. humza yousaf faces the threat of being ousted after his party's coalition partner said would vote against him when he faces a no—confidence vote in parliament. the greens said on thursday they will join some other parties to vote against

the scottish national party leader stop he had entered a power—sharing agreement between the snp and the greens hours earlier. the coalition run into trouble over a failure to meet a key climate change target and a key climate change target and a dispute over transgender healthcare.— healthcare. there is no judgement _ healthcare. there is no judgement that - healthcare. there is no judgement that the - healthcare. there is no - judgement that the balance has shifted ——it is now my judgement. the house agreement was intended to provide stability to the scottish government, and it is made possible a number of achievements. but it has served its purpose. achievements. but it has served its purpose-— its purpose. the first minister has decided, _ its purpose. the first minister has decided, i'm _ its purpose. the first minister has decided, i'm sorry - its purpose. the first minister has decided, i'm sorry to - its purpose. the first minister has decided, i'm sorry to say, to capitulate to the most reactionary backward looking forces — reactionary backward looking forces within the snp and it's the opposite of what is in scotland's best interests. the vote could — scotland's best interests. the vote could come _ scotland's best interests. tie: vote could come next week. your live with bbc news. to haiti, where a new transitional council have been sworn in following the resignation of the prime minister. the government

shake—up follows a recent surge in gang violence across the nation is nine members of the transitional council was sworn in my gunfire could be heard on the streets of the capital, which remains mostly undergoing control. the group, backed by other caribbean nations and the us, try to restore order and democratic rule in haiti but will set the agenda of a new cabinet, fauma national security council and appoint an electoral commission to pave the way for an eventual vote. a new president is expected to be sworn in by early 2026. remember those extraordinary scenes in dubai a year and a half's with rain falling in day last week? scientists say it's likely the torrential storms are made significantly more intense because of climate change. finding comes as heavy rain continues to pummel parts of southern china. justin rowlatt has been looking at how climate change is altering rainfall patterns around the

world. southern china regularly gets heavy rain, but not like this. and it's the same with dubai, big storms blowing every few years but they don't normally do this. the city got a year—and—a—half�*s worth of rain in a single day. the storms that hit the gulf states last week killed 23 people and brought dubai and oman to a virtual standstill. the study published today found it was made between 10—40% more intense because of climate change. the finding isn't certain because rainstorms are so rare in the region but the trend is clear. the atmosphere has warmed, and that means it can hold more moisture — it's that simple. then, that moisture then falls as heavier rain.

so, those storms that might have happened anyway will have heavier rainfall associated with them. and the same is true here in the uk. the met office says the 18 months to march this year were the wettest on record. now, rainfall has always varied from year to year, but the met office says the trend of wetter winters and drier summers is likely to continue in the long run, and we need to get ready for that. the reason the floods in dubai were so catastrophic was because the city isn't designed to cope with downpours like this. it shows the world needs to prepare for the climate change we know is coming. justin rowlatt, bbc news. some really dramatic scenes! let's take a look at some other news making headlines. world anti—doping agency is promising and independent review of its handling of the case that allowed two dozen chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance to avoid punishment. it follows the new

york times report that the athletes tested positive for trimetazidine before competing in the tokyo olympics. authorities had determined they were inadvertently exposed to the drug through contamination. more than 100 inmates escaped from a nigerian prison after heavy rains damaged the building. the official say and hour—long downpour on wednesday a perimeter wall, ten people were recaptured according to nigerian officials. the us plans to temporarily withdraw some of its troops from chad. the move comesjust days after the us had discussions to remove its troops from neighbouring niger. based on thursday pits part of an ongoing review of security operations which will resume after chad's presidential election on may the sixth. the university of southern california says it is cancelling its main graduation ceremony in mid—may due to new safety measures following pro—palestinian protests on campus that led to arrests. it

comes one week after cancelling the valedictorian speech by a muslim student, said she was silenced by ampo palestinian hatred. administrators say they were alarmed about security risks and social media chatter following her selection as valedictorian. some 65,000 people normally attend the event. two of the household cavalry horses who bolted and galloped through central london yesterday are in a serious condition and have undergone surgery. the army says it's too early to know if they will return to official duties. seven horses were spirited during a military exercise before unseating their riders. the horses were back on parade today. this is the event the bolted horses were being exercised for — the major general�*s inspection, which is an annual test of the household cavalry�*s ability to conduct state ceremonial duties for the year. the horses - quaker,

tennyson and both vida and trojan, who are seen here running through central london — were spooked after building materials were dropped from a height next to them. four soldiers were thrown and while three needed hospital treatment, it's been confirmed one has now been discharged. a cyclist was also treated in hospital. the army has confirmed that all four horses that bolted yesterday are now under veterinary care. three of them are being looked after here at the hyde park barracks, including the white one that was obviously injured. the fourth is at an equine hospital. equine specialists say that despite months of training to get used to the different sounds of london, these animals can still get spooked. if something they perceive to be a little bit different, so it may be louder or it may be in closer proximity to them, maybe a slightly different sort of noise to what they're used to, that can trigger a fear response in horses still. vida and quaker�*s injuries are serious but the army hopes they will make enough of a recovery to join the rest

of their regiment on official duties in the nearfuture. chi chi izundu, bbc news. china has launched a mission to its space station to mark more than two decades leading manned missions to space. a crew of three astronauts with trinder�*s jenzer 18 mission took off on a rock abound for the tiangong space station. it is the latest mission in beijing's space programme that aims to send astronauts to the moon by 2030. finally, it's one of the most beautiful cities on the planet but it also attracts vast numbers of tourists. venice has become the first to charge visitors in a bid to control numbers. tourists will need to pay 5 euros for a day trip between now and mid—july is the scheme is being tested out. those who refused to pay fees they find between 50 and 300 euros. stay with us. plenty more coming up at the top of the hour right here on bbc news.

hello. there are signs that the weather might warm up a bit next week, but not just yet. we stay in the rather chilly air for friday. a mix of sunny spells and showers and, actually, across the south of the uk, a frontal system that will bring more in the way of cloud and some splashes of rain. low pressure generally in charge of the scene through the day ahead. so, after a cold start, most places will see some spells of sunshine and a scattering of showers. some wintriness in the showers over high ground in scotland. but that frontal system will bring cloud and rain across the channel islands and across southern counties of england. temperature—wise — well, about where we have been over the last few days. north to south looking at values between 8—13 degrees. now, as we head through friday night, we'll see this band of rain in the south pushing its way further northwards. a lot of cloud with that, too. that will hold the temperatures

up to some extent but northern england, northern ireland and scotland holding on to some clear spells and it will get chilly again. we'll have a frost to start saturday morning, not as cold further south, thanks to that extra cloud, those outbreaks of rain, which will be moving northwards as the day wears on. as the rain clears, it may brighten up a little bit towards the south coast but that could allow some sharp showers to break out. for northern ireland and scotland, it's a mixture of sunny spells and showers once again through the day and those temperatures — well, maybejust creeping up a little bit in some areas. highs between 9 and 1a degrees. into the second half of the weekend, we see this area of low pressure drifting northwards. that's going to bring outbreaks of rain for some, especially across the eastern side of the uk. but it may well be that some of this rain comes a little bit further westwards, affecting quite large parts of england and wales, maybe clipping into eastern scotland. the further west you are, though, it's that mix of sunny spells and showers. some of the showers will be on the heavy side. temperatures between 9

and 12, maybe 13 degrees in the southwest. but as we head into next week, it does look like things will slowly but surely warm up. we start to bring a feed of winds from the near continent. these orange colours on our air mass chart. temperatures are set to climb, perhaps up to 19 or 20 degrees celsius through the middle part of the week, but that doesn't mean sunshine all the way — still unsettled with some rain at times.

war the ai boom as shares of both check giants rise. shares of alphabet and microsoft rise. china kicks off its biggest showcase of cars as electric vehicles take centre stage at the beijing auto show. hello and welcome to asia business report. i'm mariko oi. we begin in the us, where two tech giants, microsoft and google parent alphabet, have reported strong first quarter results, with the artificial intelligence boom at the center of it all. erin delmore has the details. among the dozens of companies reporting first—quarter earnings on thursday, alphabet and microsoft took centre stage.

both beat expectations on earnings and revenue,